Planetary nebula
A 19
Planetary nebula
A shell of gas thrown off by a dying Sun-like star, glowing in the ultraviolet light of the hot core at its centre. Within a few tens of thousands of years it will disperse and fade from view. The distance is a statistical estimate, uncertain by 30–50 %.
| Type | Planetary nebula |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Gemini |
| Distance | 2,560 pc (8.3 thousand ly) · estimated |
| Diameter | 2.7 ly |
| PN G name | PN G200.7+08.4 |
| Source | Strasbourg–ESO PN Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 6h 59m 56.6s |
| Declination (J2000) | +14° 36′ 47″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 75° S. North of latitude 75° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in January, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 8,350 years ago. At that time the first farming villages were being founded; there was no writing yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 148 million years.